Category Archives: Dyeing

Brandywine Shawl is one of those patterns in my one-day-I-will-knit-this list. I coveted the pattern ever since I laid my eyes on it and was lucky enough to receive it as a gift from a swap I participated in ages ago, (thanks, Susan!) but just never found the drive to actually knit it.

I hand-dyed the yarn I used for this project, originally planning to use it for colourwork but I was itching to cast on a shawl in this yarn. The pattern is a gift from SusanFromAthens during a Sundara swap. 🙂

My original cast on date was actually the 12th of August 2011. Yes. So long ago. I was in the middle of Chart B, that much I remember, and I made the mistake of not marking my place in the chart. So when I dropped the project to work on something and then came back to it, I could not read my work! I had no idea where in the chart I was.

So nearly 3 years after that original cast on, I frogged what little progress I had and restarted the shawl. The years between had hopefully given me enough experience to know better than to rely on my own (failing) memory.

I did 12 repeats of Chart B since the skein is quite generous and I think I could have added one more repeat and still have leftover to contribute to my sock yarn blanket.

It was fun while it lasted but I am glad to finish this shawl. Seems like ages ago when I first had the desire to knit this complicated-looking shawl. I struggled with the i-cord bind off and even thought of doing just a regular stretchy version but it looked untidy and out of place. So I persevered until I got the hang of it, which was quite satisfying because now the shawl has a nice neat top edge.

It’s no secret that I am a knitter and I love yarn. It gives me something productive to turn to when I’m not at my day job. Dyeing yarn is something I also do in the side but not on full-time basis just yet. The lovely Theresa of reMADE DXB approached me a while ago to ask if I was interested in doing a knitting workshop. I could hardly contain my excitement but had to play it cool, as you do.

I’m not a very good teacher, in my opinion, because I would expect you to follow my exact instructions and if a finger flicks the wrong way, I might start to get a twitch in my left eye.

Seriously though, I think it will be just fine. Theresa will be there to support me so I’m certain I won’t make such a mess of things.

Without further adieu, here are the details of the Knit Academy – Cable Workshop from reMADE DXB: clicky.

The workshop will be held on the 21st and 28th Nov from 11am at the reMADE studio in Al Barsha.

This is perfect for confident beginners and intermediate knitters who want to learn cables, seamless knitting in the round and other new techniques to add to their knitting arsenal. All materials will be provided, you just need to bring your knit game on!

Note: I hit “Publish” too soon so the first post went up without any text! Sorry about that.

Okay, so I Knit is this cool shop and sanctuary for knitters and crafters tucked away on Lower Marsh in London, just off the Waterloo tube station. The owner, Gerard, is the sweetest thing, soft-spoken but warms up to you after a while. Oh and he also dyes some amazing colours on yarn!

I have been on a good finishing streak so this post is all about glamour shots of said FOs.

Who needs a cowl in Dubai? It might surprise you to know that it does get cold here, in the desert, despite over 360 days of glorious sunshine every year. Yes, we get an average of 5 days a year when the mighty Sun is obscured due to heavy fog or sandstorm, or heavens forbid we get rain! Out of the 360 days, about 60 of those are the actual proper “winter” when the temperature sometimes hits single digits. You can never go wrong with a cowl tucked in your handbag for the rest of the year because of over-zealous air conditioning everywhere. I mean everywhere! So yes, cowls in Dubai are a thing.

This one was a test-knit. It was more like a recipe because it’s brioche stitch and if you haven’t tried knitting brioche stitch then you are missing out on the fun, big time! However, the ever-talented Dieuwke has added an amazing twist to this cowl. See that braid of squishy goodness? Yes, that! Do you think you can figure out how to get that? Ha! Maybe you can after studying it and doing a trial-and-error for the next few weeks or months, but why bother when you can grab the pattern from Ravelry? I present to you my Experioche, knit in my own hand-dyed Dubai Knits Luxe DK. Well, the white yarn is undyed. I’m a bit partial, but I just love this yarn.Read the rest of this entry →

These ladies take their yarn the same way they take their superheroes, scifi TV, food, fitness, work and pretty much everything else: seriously! Just look at the level of concentration as Ruth tries to make a decision between those two skeins!

When Joji asked for test knitters for her tunic design, I hesitated. I actually did. Not sure why. Maybe I was intimidated because up until that point, I have not knitted any of her gorgeous designs. She needed another knitter for the 38/40 size. Just perfect for me!

So the next step, after reading the draft pattern in its entirety, because of course you HAVE to read the entire pattern before casting on or else you might miss something crucial in the notes! Yes, I was totally being sarcastic there because I would have cast on rightaway if I had the yarn ready that very minute. But, alas, with the hundreds of fingering weight skeins in my stash, I had not enough of the same colourway to knit my Bello. Good thing I grabbed 12 skeins of that undyed Wollmeise Pure when it was on offer! I dyed three skeins to make sure I have enough for a me-sized tunic/pullover. Dyeing was fun! I love these colours and they are probably one of the best I have ever dyed, if I do say so myself.Read the rest of this entry →

I knew it was going to happen, it was only a matter of time. I had every intention of being monogamous to my current cardigan project, but it landed on Sleeve Island and it sort of took a bit of steam out of the entire experience. That, coupled with one of those “Oooh, shiny!” moments meant that I was winding up yet another skein of yarn to cast on a new project.

I swear it was a quickie. Just the right amount of distraction from the stockinette merry-go-round of the first cardigan sleeve. It’s also a test knit for Joji using my MCN DK. She made the prototype using the skein I sent her as a gift. To stay true to her design, I decided to use the same yarn base.

I was worried about how busy this colourway was going to be and that the cable detail may not show up well. I should not have worried. The yarn brought out the details just fine. I love the sprinkle of bright red across the hat, just enough to give it contrast.

I love the crown decreases! Although if you look closely you’ll see the spit where I knitted when I should have been purling. Doh. I love this hat. I hope Joji releases the pattern soon so you can all whip up your own Dubai Hats too!

Another quickie is this soft pink baby cardigan for a colleague’s baby girl. I made the 6-month size so that she can get more wear out of it. This would be perfect around winter in the UK when they travel there.
I made this just in the nick of time for the Q4 KAL over on the Irish Girlie Knits Group in Ravelry. I was feeling so bad about not participating in the KAL when I’m a co-moderator. Then again, there was no push needed to get this baby cardi done because it was such a lovely and quick knit. I used what’s left of the Crystal Palace Bunny Hop, one of the oldest yarn in my stash. It’s so soft and lovely to work with. I’d buy another bag in a heartbeat, if I weren’t trying to be good and knitting from stash right now.

That’s all the quickie projects for now. I’m back to finishing cardigans. A second Goodale in Sundara Yarn Sport Merino (Mint Julep) for the Sweater KAL, Ohlala by Joji in Wollmeise DK and Sundara DK Merino for her Fall KAL and a Serra in Tosh MCN Worsted.